I forget how much I like using leeks in cooking. I love their delicate flavor. I was completely beat from work so I wanted to make a simple dinner. This took about 25min, including prep + plating ;)

A new sauce that was on sale. It was just okay, nothing special. It sounded a lot better than it was!

Dinner was served at nearly 8pm. I can’t believe there is still natural light!! It was a bit dim, hence the semi-noisy photos, but it got the job done ;)

So what all did I make?

Kale Chips

Preheat oven to 325*

Wash and de-stem kale [1head].

Tear and spread on a pan.

Top with ~1T olive oil, salt + pepper.

Bake for about 20-30min, turning every 7-10min, until desired crispiness is reached.

Top with apple cider vinegar if you want a little tang! Kind of like salt + vin chips..sooo good!

I like my kale chips a bit charred :)

Soba noodles 2 days in a row. I know these are meant for Asian styled dishes, but I say the heck with that. They are SO good and can be paired with anything. You can find them in the Specialty aisle, in the Asian cooking section. They usually aren’t with regular pasta noodles.

Tomato Leek “sauce” [serves 2-3]

1 leek, cut – washed/cleaned thoroughly + chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

1c tomato sauce of choice

about 2/3 can of Great Northern beans.

Sauté leek in a little olive oil for a few minutes.

Add garlic for another 1-2min.

Add diced tomatoes with juices and let simmer for about 5min.

Add beans + tomato sauce and simmer for about 3min.

Serve!

This is fabulous as a side or topped on noodles/rice/quinoa/etc. I loved the addition of the Great Northern beans. They’re nice and creamy and go well with Italian flavors. This meal was filling but I didn’t feel weighed down from it at all. The noodles seem to settle much lighter in my stomach than whole wheat pasta.

Hmmm this is not really a sauce…and ideas of what to call it? DEfinitely needs to be stuffed in a pita!!

ilovekale.ilovekale.ilovekale.

Okay. So after 3 bizzzzy days of work I have a little “downtime.” By that I mean, get stuff done time! On my list? I hope to get all of this done this week.

The post I’m writing for Teri is going to be a baking post. I’m looking for suggestions too! I have a few ideas but thought I might ask for your input as well. I’m going to write a post about healthing up a baked good that is typically fat laden and sinful. I’m probably going to have to make a few trials, so a crazy complex recipe won’t work. I thought possibly…pound cake…but can that really be done well without butter?? ;) Maybe just something as simple as the best healthy blueberry muffin!? Let me know what you think!